


A Soul Compelled to Look Upward

by biswholocked



Series: JWP 2016 [9]
Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: Episode: s02e02 The Hounds of Baskerville, Gen, Late Night Conversations, Missing Scene, Smoking, space
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-08
Updated: 2016-07-08
Packaged: 2018-07-22 09:37:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7430569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/biswholocked/pseuds/biswholocked
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Takes place directly after HOB. Lestrade and Sherlock have a conversation about smoking and space.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Soul Compelled to Look Upward

**Author's Note:**

> Written for day eight of JWP. Today's prompt was: The Wonder of the Age: For Victorian Holmes & Watson it was things like telephones and motorcars; for current Sherlocks and John/Joan it’s more likely to be nanotechnology and/or iPhones; 22nd Century Holmes deals with androids and casual Moon travel. (For Sherlock Hound or Basil of Baker Street it’s probably flea powder.) Use or allude to such a modern miracle of the age for whatever age you choose.
> 
> Not gonna lie, all I read was "Moon" and from there I thought "hey, Lestrade likes space" (thanks to impishtubist for that headcanon), which in turn led to this. The Curiosity rover landed in August 2012. HOB was released January of 2012 but John's blog puts it has happening around March, so the timeline works out good enough for me.

Lestrade can hardly light his cigarette, his hands are shaking so badly. As he sucks in his first breath of smoke and tar, something in him finally relaxes. He exhales heavily and leans back against the wall of the inn. The only light filters down from one of the upstairs rooms and a small porchlight; otherwise, the surrounding countryside is dark and quiet.

_ Not so quiet after all, _ he thinks, remembering the red eyes of the hound and the ear-shattering explosion. He shivers and takes another pull off the cigarette. 

Footsteps from behind make him turn, but it’s only Sherlock, coat pulled tight around him.

“Spare a cigarette, Inspector?” he asks, coming to stand next to Lestrade.

Lestrade snorts. “Not likely. John told me you’re quitting.”

“I seem to recall you had quit last month.”

Lestrade shrugs and looks up at the star-filled sky. “Yeah, well. Things change.”

“I noticed a distinct lack of tan line on your left ring finger,” Sherlock replies, which is likely the closest thing to an apology Lestrade’s going to get.

“You know they’ve got a rover set to land on Mars sometime this summer,” Lestrade says, gesturing to the stars above them. “Along with a little laboratory, to take samples and all.”

Sherlock follows his gaze but keeps his face carefully blank.

“You don’t know about Mars, do you?” Lestrade realises, taking a final draw of his cigarette. Sherlock stays quiet as he exhales the smoke and crushes the butt underfoot.

“I fail to see the appeal,” Sherlock says at length.

“Of space exploration?” Lestrade shoves his hands in his pockets, thinking. “I dunno. It’s the miracle of our time, I suppose. In my childhood, there was the moon landing, which no one ever dreamed would happen til it did. Now Mars. Somewhere out there, a little thing is making its way through space, going places humans can’t.”

Sherlock says nothing, and after a long moment Lestrade pushes off the wall. “I’m going in. Coming?”

“I think I’ll stay for a moment,” Sherlock replies, still looking up. 

Lestrade nods and murmurs a goodnight, then walks into the dimly lit lobby of the inn, leaving the dark night and all its mysteries behind.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments always welcome and appreciated!


End file.
